1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to bicycle carrier racks, and more particularly to multi-use bicycle carrier rack adapters for use with child carriers, cargo carriers, golf bag carriers, surfboard carriers, and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Prior carrier racks for bicycles have, for the most part, been attached directly to the bicycle frame. The rear seat stays, rear dropout, chain stays, and/or seat robe have been utilized for the rear carrier attachment. The front fork of the bicycle, fork tip, head tube and/or handle bars have also been used for front carrier accessories. Carder accessories attached to a bicycle frame are difficult to assemble and install. Accessories such as a small child carder seat, cargo carrier, surfboard carrier, or golf club carder often stay on the bicycle because of the difficulty and inconvenience involved in removing and reattaching such accessory. However, leaving the accessory on the bicycle tends to discourage the bicyclist from using the bicycle for any use other than the accessory's function. For example, as long as a small child seat carrier is attached, the bicycle mainly gets used for taking a child for a bike ride.
Representative of this genre of prior bicycle carrier accessories include U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,320,344 issued to Belanger, 2,234,299 issued to Christy, 3,746,392 issued to Svensson et at., and 4,367,829 issued to Kusz. Similarly, related prior golf club carders for bicycles of this type include U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,770,326, issued to Thompson and 4,817,833 issued to Rebera. Surfboard carriers for bicycles of this type include U.S. Pat. No. 4,296,878 issued to Ward et al. Cargo carriers for bicycles of this type include U.S. Pat. No. 4,367,829 issued to Kusz. When any of such type of carriers are left attached to the bicycle because of the inconvenience of attachment and removal of the carrier, the likelihood of using the bicycle narrows considerably. Only after the carrier accessory is removed will one be more apt to use the bicycle, especially for recreational purposes. Therefore, the prior accessory carriers which are attached to a bicycle frame, while broadening a specific utility of the bicycle, discourage overall use of the bicycle because of the inconvenience and bother of removal of the accessory, and greatly diminish recreational use of the bicycle.
Most contemporary mountain, racing, street, cruising and hybrid bicycles have bosses, gussets and/or brazed on eyelid mountings on the seat stays and rear dropout as well as on the front fork and lower fork tips allowing for securing horizontally oriented support racks thereon. Representative examples include, Blackburn Designs of Campbell, Calif., and Rhode Gear of Providence, R.I. which have produced standard racks for many years. Recently, many major bicycle manufacturers such as Trek of Waterloo, Wis., Specialized Components of Morgan Hill, Calif., and Diamond Back (Avenir) of Camarillo, Calif. have begun to market similar racks. Such racks provide for more convenient attachment and removal of panniers and small carriers. Prior U.S. Patents disclosing such panniers and carriers include, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,516,705 issued to Jackson, 4,671,438 issued to La Plante, and 4,387,835 issued to Golzer. In addition to these disclosures, rack design has been modified to easily accommodate the attachment and removal of child seats and cargo carriers as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,030,648 issued to Johnson et al. and 4,053,091 issued to Schimmels. Such related art consists of accessories that are either connected directly to the bicycle frame or accessories that are connected to a specially designed rack. Nowhere in the prior art is there mention or teaching of an adapter that attaches to a standard rack allowing for the quick attachment and removal of a variety of accessories.
Another type of carrier and mounting assembly for bicycles is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,902,737 issued to Berger et al. which discloses a U-shaped auxiliary frame member with a pair of spaced downwardly turned leg portions and a pair of clamps on a support member which is adapted to be clamped on the forward portion of a bicycle. Such device being attached to the head post was dangerous, inconvenient, and cumbersome. Such limitations have undoubtedly been a reason such carriers have not received widespread acceptance.
Another type of carder device for tandem or double seat motorcycles is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,466,660 issued to Mabie, which utilized parallel depending legs having a stop to limit the downward sliding movement of the legs into any of a number of pairs of opposed sockets which were attached to horizontal elongated bars along the rack.
Still another type of motorcycle rack is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,791,563 issued to Raat, which disclosed an interchangeable rack-carrier system wherein the rack supports terminate in two open tubes which receive and exchange an adopted element having a pair of spaced end portions which mate with open tubes on the rack support. Such rack is adaptable for motorcycles but is not useful or adaptable on bicycles.
Accordingly, it is the primary object of this invention to provide a bicycle carrier rack adapter which can easily, quickly, and conveniently attach to, release from, and interchange with, various bicycle carrier accessories such as child carriers, cargo carriers, golf bag carriers, surfboard carriers and the like on bicycles and motor driven cycles, and be easily and conveniently attached and removed from the bicycle.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide such a bicycle carrier rack adapter which is easily, quickly, and conveniently secured to standard bicycle racks without modification resulting in a vastly improved bicycle carrier means which utilizes the rack and not the bicycle frame for accessory attachment.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part win be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.